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Billy Cranston (2017 movie)
William "Billy" Cranston is an autistic student at Angel Grove High school, which made him an often target for bullies. His knacks for explosives landed him in detention, where he meets the other Power Rangers, and eventually takes on the role as the Blue Ranger. Personality "Billy has always been challenged in his abilities to communicate and interact socially. Whip-smart and sweet, he is the most pure-hearted of the group. Billy has never had any friends, so finding teenagers that he's comfortable with is a big deal, and soon he begins connecting with people in a way he's never been able to do before."https://powerrangersnow.wordpress.com/2016/10/07/movie-synopsis-character-bios/ Billy is courageous and intelligent. He is on the autism spectrum and can't understand jokes or sarcasm very well, but can remember things to the letter. He's a brilliant inventor, creating and perfecting alien technology with Alpha-5; and a quick learner, mastering alien martial arts with relative ease and eagerness. He's very considerate, humble, sweet and loyal to his friends and even goes so far as to censor himself in front of them even when they curse frequently. He quite literally gave his life for his friends, sacrificing the location of the Zeo Crystal to save them, and being drowned to death by Rita in the process. Billy's personality before becoming a Ranger was largely shaped by his father, who would often listen to country music with his son and take him into the mine where he worked. Billy clearly misses his father, as when he was setting up the explosives that would lead to the discovery of the Power Coins he was thinking out loud as if he was talking to his deceased father in the present. Given how he'd never had friends in the past, Billy was quite attached to his father, learning everything he could from him. Billy lacked self-confidence in social interactions due to his autism as well as his history of being bullied for it, which is a common occurrence for people on the spectrum. However, when given a moment to concentrate, Billy could enter an almost trance-like state and show off his skills. This hyper-focusing state was unnerving for anyone unused to witnessing, however, it was also this trait that made Billy endearing to his friends, quickly gaining their respect once they began to understand him. Typical of someone on the spectrum, Billy is prone to nervousness when confronted with scenarios both new and overwhelming. This is best seen in his hesitation in testing out his superhuman strength to leap across a ravine with Jason and Kimberly. This is largely due to his brain lacking the built-in connections for stress management that the average non-autistic person has. Despite this, Billy is determined and brave enough to overcome this difficulty of his. Keeping in line with this, Billy has a tendency to be hyper-verbal when panicking as a way to calm himself down. Billy's confidence also took a turn for the better after his bully knocked himself out by headbutting Billy after failing to snap his wrist in the hallway at school. When he came out unscathed from the altercation, his peers surrounded him with praise and affection for putting their presumed common tormentor in his place. Video game appearances Power Rangers Legacy Wars The reboot Power Rangers fight with Rangers from the mainstream universe in Power Rangers Legacy Wars. Blue Ranger Arsenal *'Blue Power Coin:' Billy's supernatural crystal, which is the source of his powers, and his ability to morph. Zords *'Triceratops Battle Zord:' Billy's alien battle vehicle, very powerful, yet hard to control, with Billy only being able to control his Zord after gaining full access to his morphing capability. Powers and Abilities *'Power Ranger Physiology': After receiving his Blue Ranger power coin, Billy gained gained following superpowers that are possessed by Rangers in general: **'Superhuman Strength': Billy's strength is enhanced to superhuman levels. He figured this out when he tore the door of his locker off like a piece of paper by accident. ***'Superhuman Climbing': Billy's Power Rangers-level superhuman strength improved his grip that he now able to climb faster and better than regular humans, as he now able to scaling a steep cliff in mere seconds. ***'Superhuman Leaps': Billy's Power Rangers-level superhuman strength enable him to jump higher than any regular humans, shown when he leaped over a large abyss. **'Superhuman Durability': Billy's body tissues are substantially enhanced by his power coin that he cannot be physically harmed by ordinary humans. He figured this out when his long time bully could not break his arm and knocked himself out when the bully tried to headbutt him, much to Billy's pleasant surprise. **'Morphing': Billy, upon acquiring the superpowers bestowed by his power coin, is capable of morphing into his ranger form by forming a suit of powerful blue armor around his body. *'Gifted Intelligence': Billy is exceptionally intelligent due to having high-functioning autism, being a brilliant inventor, able to tinker with alien technology with Alpha 5, and mastering alien martial arts with relative ease. **'Expert Hacker:' Billy is a highly skilled hacker, managing to hack the government tracking device on Jason's leg, and to subsequently fake its signal. **'Eidetic Memory:' Billy appears to have a photographic memory and perfect recall, as can remember most useful things to the letter. **'Accelerated Learning Curve:' Billy was able to develop skills at an extraordinary rate prior to becoming a Ranger, being able to learn how to drive in the middle of a car chase while fleeing the mine with his soon-to-be teammates while being pursued by several police cars despite little experience as a driver. **'Hyper-Focusing State:' Due to being autistic, Billy's focus and concentration is a bit different than a neuro-typical person's. When engaging in any single task, Billy can block out almost all external stimuli and process information linearly at an intensity that frequently dumbfounds his friends and peers. This state is common among people with high-functioning forms of autism. *'Skilled Combatant:' Billy, following team training sessions with Zordon and Alpha 5 eventually became fairly skilled in alien martial arts, and thus managed to defeat many of Rita Repulsa's Putty troops. Notes * This version of Billy is the first known autistic Power Ranger of the franchise * He is the first member of his team to unlock his morphing ability * He is the first Ranger to be shown being killed on screen. * He loves country music, mostly because it helps not miss his dad as much. * Billy serves as the catalyst for the Rangers becoming a team: *# His tendency to get bullied drew the attention of Jason to defend him. *# He modified Jason's tracking device, allowing them to travel to the old mine. *# He was the one who blew up the rock that encased the power coins. *# He was the first to morph, doing so involuntarily after breaking up a fight between Jason and Zack. *# His death solidified the others as a team. Behind the Scenes Portrayal *Billy is portrayed by RJ Cyler. Appearances * Power Rangers/''Power Rangers: The Official Movie Novel'' * Power Rangers: Aftershock See Also *Billy Cranston - Source counterpart from Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers *Etoffe Tribe Knight Dan - Source counterpart from Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger References Category:Power Rangers (2017 movie team) Category:Male PR Rangers Category:Movie-exclusive PR Rangers Category:Resurrected PR Rangers Category:Replacement PR Rangers Category:Intellectual PR Rangers Category:PR-exclusive Rangers